Chapter 24

Monday dawned clear and bright as Sunday. I awoke at my usual time, showered and read the morning paper. By the time I'd finished, the sun was well up and promised a gorgeous day. A quick check of the computer yielded no emails I needed to answer, and an hour-by-hour weather forecast that was so good it gave me an idea.

I did a quick check out the front window to confirm that Jerry had left, before I dug the Tracphone out and hit redial. Sherry answered on the second ring.

"Hello."

"Hi Sherry. This is John. I just had an idea that I wanted to run by you. It's such a pretty morning that I thought we might want to meet someplace outdoors, rather than in a McDonald's."

"Hmm- that sounds fine to me. I assume you have someplace in mind?"

"Yep- I was thinking that we might meet in Battery Park. There are some picnic tables down over the hill from the overlook, and it faces South, so we ought to get plenty of this sunshine. How about if we meet there at nine-thirty?"

"Ok, John. I think that would be great! It sure beats being cooped up in a fast food place, and it's more private, to boot. I'll see you there- I was just about to finish getting dressed anyhow."

I grinned to myself. "Uh, Sherry- just what are you wearing now?"

"A nightgown and robe, John! And you're not getting me started like that this morning!", Sherry said jokingly. "I'll see you shortly."

"Ok Sherry- I'll park in the upper lot and you park in the lower one and I'll meet you at the flagpole. Drive carefully, sweetheart!"

"I shall. You be careful, too John! Later, gator!"

"'Later!"

Sherry hung up, and I punched the "end" button and then turned off the phone and popped out the battery. The phone went back in the safe, and I finished getting dressed and ready to go.

Battery Park was an interesting place. It was named for the placement of a small Confederate artillery battery on the hilltop there during the early part of the Civil War. The purpose was to hinder the advance of a scratch Federal brigade moving up the railroad along the river.

As it turned out, the Federals had commandeered a couple of riverboats and were able to pass the battery on the river, which was at extreme range for the guns. Once the Federals were past, they disembarked a few troops, shook out a skirmish line and flanked the Confederates out of their positions and forced them to retreat, eventually back over the mountains and into Virginia.

The site of the battery was more or less forgotten except for an historic marker placed at along the road that crossed the hill there. When the Interstate was built, the road was cut at both ends by the right of way. An overpass to access the handful of houses that dotted the road reconnected one end. Eventually, the state Highway Department bought out the property there and deeded it over to the county for a park. Some of the old fields were leveled and graded to make picnic areas and playgrounds, and a nice overlook was built near the site of the battery, along with a flagpole and a memorial plaque.

When I was a boy, my friends and I came there often on our bikes and spent hours roaming the woods and reenacting the battle there (or at least the battle as we imagined it). It was a great place to play, since we didn't have to worry about traffic, and we explored every nook and cranny of the place.

All this passed through my head, as I drove toward the park. There were lots of good memories tied up in that place. On the way I stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts to buy a dozen assorted cake and filled donuts and fill a thermos with coffee.

I arrived at the park ahead of Sherry and parked at the far end of the upper parking lot. I gathered up all the stuff and started across the lot. Sherry pulled into the lower lot just as I reached the bottom of the steps with my burdens.

I freed up an arm and gave a cheery wave as Sherry opened the car door and stepped out. I was mildly surprised to see her dressed as usual; white, button-up blouse, blue denim calf-length skirt, but white running shoes instead of flats. Then she turned and I got a better look and could see a change. Her blouse was unbuttoned and she was wearing a light green t-shirt underneath it. It was a nice look for her.

Sherry spotted me and waved back with a big smile on her face. She came across the lot and gave me a big hug. I hugged her back as best I could with my hands full of bags.

"What the heck do you have there, John?" she asked.

"Coffee and some assorted donuts." I replied.

"OK- that accounts for the one bag, but what about the other?"

"Ahhh, well that's a surprise", I said with a grin. "You'll see in good time".

"Grrrr! John, you're going to drive me crazy!" she laughed.

I laughed back at her. "It won't be long. Lets go find a table where we'll be a little more private."

"OK. Hey, do you want me to carry some of that?"

"Sure- how about taking the donuts. I'll carry the thermos and this other stuff."

Sherry took the bag with the donuts and we walked side by side down a graveled path that led to a series of picnic tables scattered around a clearing that overlooked the river.

We found one that had a nice southern exposure to let the sun in, but still sheltered from the main area by some bushes. We put our stuff down on the table, and I turned to Sherry, stretched out my arms, and said, "Now let me give you a proper greeting!"

Sherry smiled and leaned into the embrace. She turned her face up to me and I kissed her, gently at first, then with more passion. It seemed that neither of us had forgotten where the noses went. I could feel my cock inflating as our bodies responded to each other. Finally, I tore myself away. My heart was racing. I hadn't had this feeling for a good while.

Sherry looked equally flustered. Her face was flushed and her breathing was a little ragged.

"Whew!" I said with a smile. "That was quite a hello kiss!"

Sherry grinned back. "Sure was! I've been looking forward to that since we decided to get together."

"Me, too! You're certainly a good kisser."

"I'm surprised you'd say that, John. I really don't have a lot of experience- its been pretty much pecks on the cheek and "chaste" kisses for me."

"Well- I guess you just had some natural talent waiting to come out, Sherry. That was about as hot a non-French kiss as I've ever had."

Sherry gave me a wide, happy grin. "Why thank you, kind sir!".

"You're most welcome, Milady! Anyhow, lets have some coffee and donuts."

"And surprises ... don't forget that", Sherry replied.

"Ah, yes ... and surprises."

We sat across the table from each other and I poured us each a cup of coffee. Both of us took it with cream, no sugar. I snagged a raspberry filled donut, while Sherry took a vanilla cream filled one.

I took one look at what she was eating, and had to laugh.

Sherry gave me a quizzical look. "What's so funny?"

I did my best to keep a straight face. "Well, I was just thinking that I had something nice and cream-filled for you", I said with a wink and my best Dirty-Old-Man leer.

When I said that, Sherry was in the midst of taking a sip of coffee. She laughed so hard that coffee mist sprayed across the table.

"John! That's so nasty!" she said when she'd recovered.

"Nasty, but true my dear."

Sherry's face reddened a bit. "Yes, nasty but true."

After that, we relaxed and chatted for a bit. I learned that Sherry had grown up in a little rural town about twenty miles away. She had been a late baby, her parents having given up on having children and being surprised when Sherry came along when her mother was 42.

Her father had been a part-time farmer and factory worker at a plant that made axes and other hand tools. The plant had closed down about the time Sherry graduated from High School. Luckily, her father had worked there long enough to qualify for a small pension.

Her mother had been a farm wife, doing many of the daily chores around the small farm. Sherry was the only child, and she had helped with the chores ever since she was old enough to be useful.

She had done very well in school, showing an early talent for music. She'd been in the band, and the chorus, and earned a full scholarship, but had worked in the library to get spending money. Sherry majored in Music and had a minor in Elementary Education, lacking only her student teaching to qualify for a job.

She'd met Jerry when they were both seniors and taking a required religion class. He'd been shy, but eventually worked up the nerve to ask her to have a cup of coffee with him after class. She had had practically no experience with men (and Jerry had had about the same with women), and found herself enjoying the attention. They became friends.

Jerry had grown up in a coal camp in a remote area of the county. His father had been killed in a roof fall when he was five. His mother had been a schoolteacher in a one-room elementary school. She had raised him very strictly, and had been determined to keep him out of the mines. It was from her that Jerry had learned his religious convictions.

He had worked his way through college, taking the General Business curriculum.

Eventually Jerry asked her to marry him after graduation. Sherry agreed, and they were married in the little independent Freewill Baptist church that Jerry had been raised in.

Jerry found a job in the parts department of the car dealership, and they settled down in the house they were living in now.

Jerry had discouraged her from getting a job, saying that a woman's duty according to the Bible was to take care of the household. She had been disappointed, but decided not to fight it.

Over the years, Jerry had become even more dogmatic and rigid. He had become obsessed with financial security, and kept tight control over every dollar. Their house had been paid off in record time. Jerry doled out a set amount of money weekly for groceries, and insisted on paying each bill himself. Sherry was not even listed on the bank accounts.

Jerry's mom had died shortly after their fifth wedding anniversary from a long bout with lung cancer. Her illness had depleted any estate, and she left nothing to them but some keepsakes.

Sherry's folks had died a couple of years later in a car accident. They had been coming home from a reunion of axe plant retirees, and were hit head-on by a drunk driver going the wrong way on the Interstate. They had both been killed instantly.

Their will directed that the farm and all but 5 acres of the land, which contained the old family cemetery and a small cabin and pond be sold and the proceeds placed in a trust.

The income from the trust was to be used to maintain the cemetery and cabin. Any income left was to be reinvested in the trust. Sherry was the only one that could access the trust, and then only with the permission of the trustee, a retired judge that had been friends with her parents.

When Jerry found out about the terms of the will he had been furious. He had expected to receive the entire proceeds of the estate. Sherry said that he had raged at her parents and her for days. She also confided that he parents had never liked Jerry, although they pretended to for her sake, and that they wanted her to have something for herself, independent of Jerry.

She visited the cemetery and her parent's graves several times each year. The cabin was rented as a retreat for writers and other artists, mostly during the summer months, as it didn't have a lot of amenities for cooler weather.

I gave her the capsule story of my upbringing. Growing up in Powder City, going away to school, coming back home to live.

After we'd nearly talked ourselves out (and consumed all the donuts and most of the coffee) we paused for a bit. Sherry took the opportunity to use the bathroom at the picnic area. I used a tree.

I was seated at the table again when Sherry returned.

"Well, John- will you finally come clean about what's in those bags?" she said with a smile. "I'm dying of curiosity here."

I grinned at her. "I suppose so. You've been surprisingly patient, sweetie."

"I got into talking with you, John. It's been forever and a day since I've been able to unload on someone. There's no one in the church that I can talk to like this. It would get back to Jerry in a minute and he'd freak out."

"You know, Sherry- I worry about that. I know you said that he's never gotten violent with you, but I just have the feeling he's not perfectly stable. He was certainly out of control there in front of Dave's that afternoon."

"Oh God, John- you don't know the half of it. He was so mad when you told him off as you went in that I was afraid he'd have a stroke. Thank goodness some of the others were able to calm him down."

"He doesn't scare me, Sherry, but I'm concerned about you. You need to keep being careful".

"I shall, John. As I said, he really doesn't pay a lot of attention to me as long as things go along smoothly."

"I'm not worried about the smooth times, hon", I said with a bit of a frown.

"I'll keep being careful- I promise!"

I wasn't entirely satisfied, but I could see that I couldn't push things much further right now, so I changed the subject.

"Anyhow- let me show you what I have here. Open this one first", I said as I handed her the bag with the new underwear.

Sherry pulled the bag over to her, opened the top and looked in. She started laughing as her face colored.

"Oh my, John! I can't believe you did this! Thank you so much! I was embarrassed that the stuff you made me give you was so worn out. Jerry doesn't give me much money to buy clothes with."

I smiled back. "Well- I knew that I wasn't going to give you that stuff back. I'm keeping it for a souvenir of our first encounter, my dear."

"I was so embarrassed and scared- but excited all at the same time. I know I'll never forget that morning."

"Nor shall I, Sherry. Anyhow I got you nine panties and three bras. That ought to keep you presentable in case of an accident, as my mom used to say."

"Oh, definitely, and I'll think of you every time I put them on!"

I laughed. "And I'll think of you taking them off!"

Sherry's cheeks colored prettily. "You do that, John Darkscar! Just so you know, I'll most likely be thinking of you when I'm taking them off, as well. Now, what's in the second bag?"

"This one's not as fun, but I wanted to do it." I reached in the second bag and handed her the jewel case with the CD I'd burned inside. "This is all the information I got about you and the adult bookstore. All the pictures, surveillance video and records are on here. There aren't any printed copies anywhere, and all the files have been deleted and overwritten on my computer. I won't say that they can't be recovered, but it would take someone like the FBI to do it. The stuff on that disk is encrypted with the strongest encryption available, and I'm the only one that knows the key."

Sherry stood the disk case on its corner and nudged it so it spun slowly. She hesitated for a bit. Finally she said "Why John? Are you sending me away?"

I was stunned. I'd never considered that Sherry might think that way. I reached out and put my hands on hers. "Oh Sherry! No, not at all! I did this so you have the choice. I never did feel right about holding onto this after I got to know you better. I don't want you to go, but I want it to be your free choice. This disk is yours- you can do what you please with it."

Sherry's eyes filled with tears. "John- my heart felt like it dropped to my feet when I thought you might be ending things. In just the short time we've spent together, I've been freer than I've ever been. I've been able to talk to you about things I've kept inside forever. I know I'm not all that beautiful, but you've made me feel special. The idea of losing that hurt!"

I slid along the bench and put my arm around Sherry's shoulders and gently pulled her against me.

"I'm sorry, Sherry. I guess I didn't do that very well. I thought it might be a relief to know that that stuff wasn't hanging over your head. I've come to be very fond of you. I honestly don't know where we're going, but I know that our futures are entangled."

Sherry put her arms around me and hugged me back, fiercely. "Dammit, John don't you ever do that to me again! I don't know where we're going either, but I know that I can't go back to the way things were!" She looked up at me- her eyes wet, but her face set with determination.

"I'm not going anywhere, Sherry. I didn't mean to upset you, but you deserve the freedom to make choices for yourself. I'm not going to have you under my thumb like Jerry wants. I had you that way and I just couldn't do it." I leaned in and kissed her cheek.

"Oh jeeze, John- that's not a kiss! THIS is a kiss!" Sherry hugged me even tighter and kissed me hard on the mouth. Her lips were demanding. I kissed her back, while I rubbed her shoulders and upper back. Somehow this kiss was different than before ... less arousing, but more satisfying.

We stayed like that for a while ... I'm not sure just how long. Eventually we both relaxed and drew apart.

"Whew! I needed that, John! I know I'm being silly but I needed the reassurance. " Sherry said as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Ah, Sherry, it was my fault. I shouldn't have sprung it on you like that."

"Never mind, John. It's in the past now. I understand what you were trying to do." Sherry looked thoughtful as she picked up the CD case.

"John- I want you to take this back. I need to make sure I remember just how close I came to disaster. If it had been almost anyone but you, I'd either be kicked out of my home and on the way to a messy divorce, or someone's toy."

"Are you sure, Sherry? I can destroy this in such a way that it can't ever be read. Just say the word."

"No- I want you to keep it. Somehow ... I don't know ... it's a bond between us. What's on there brought us together and I don't want it to disappear. Is that nuts?"

"I don't know, Sherry. If it's that important to you, then I'll be happy to keep it. I'll keep it safe."

"I know you will, John."

I picked up the case and slipped it back into the bag that had had the stuff I'd brought for Sherry in it. That reminded me that there was still one other thing in it.

I reached in and found the little box with the pendant in it. I lifted it out and placed it on the table in front of Sherry.

"Merry early Christmas, Sherry" I said with a big smile. "I hope you like this."

Sherry pried the ribbon off of the box and peeled the tape away from the paper very carefully.

I laughed. "Oh, for heaven's sake, Sherry, just rip the dern paper off of it. It's not like you're going to save it to reuse!"

Sherry glanced up at me as her face reddened. She laughed a bit and said "I can't help it! I'm a bit compulsive about opening packages- it always drove Dad up the wall, too. I think guys tend to be rip-and-tearer's while gals disassemble their wrapping."

I smiled back. "I suppose it doesn't matter as long as the package gets open. I'm just not patient enough to do it gently unless there's a good reason to save the wrapper."

Sherry finished unwrapping the box. She set the paper aside, opened the box and gasped as she saw what was inside. "Oh, John it's beautiful! I can't believe you got this for me!"

She picked up the pendant and eased the chain from the box. "No one's ever bought me jewelry. Jerry gave me his mother's engagement ring and wedding ring set. In all the time we've been married he's never bought me something like this."

She turned to me, her face aglow. "Thank you John, thank you so much!"

"You're most welcome Sherry, my dear. Whatever I paid was worth it to see the look on your face! By the way, that's a Celtic Eternity Knot. It symbolizes destinies intertwined. When I saw it I knew it was perfect for you. I'm sure you have a lot of Celt in you, with that red hair, and we surely have become intertwined! Here, let me put it on you." Sherry handed me the pendant, and turned so that she faced away from me. She lifted her hair, exposing the back of her neck. I fumbled a bit with the clasp, but I finally got it open. I draped the chain around her neck and hooked the ends together. Before I let go, I leaned in and kissed Sherry's neck. I felt her shudder as I pressed my lips to her skin.

"John- you just gave me goose bumps! Look at my arms!" She held out an arm for my inspection. Sure enough, it was covered in goose bumps. "God, what you do to me!" she said shakily.

"I wish I could see it- I can't wait 'til I can get to a mirror."

"I can see it, and it looks good on you, Sherry" I said with a big smile. "One thing- its sterling silver, and it will leave a mark if you wear it all the time.

"I don't care about a mark, but I'll have to take it off at night, anyhow. I doubt if I could sleep with it around my neck. I promise you John, that I'll wear it every day, though!"

"Don't take any chances, Sherry. I'd rather you not wear it than to infuriate Jerry. I swear, I don't think he's entirely stable."

"I won't take chances, John. The chain's long enough that it won't show under my blouse, and if he does spot it, I'll just tell him its something I found in my Mom's old jewelry box. He's never paid it any attention ... except to make sure there wasn't anything very valuable in it after she died"; she said with a touch of bitterness, "he'd never have noticed anything like a silver pendant."

"Well- just be careful!" I replied. I sat silently for a bit.

"Sherry," I said slowly "you know that if we keep seeing each other, sooner or later someone's going to notice. It's not possible to keep a secret forever, no matter how careful we are. It won't be a disaster for me when it does- I'm single. I'm sure that tongues will wag, but I don't care. It will be very rough on you, though. Your "friends" at the church will cut you dead, and Jerry will divorce you at the very least! I'll certainly help you any way I can, since I'm at least halfway responsible, but you need to know what you're in for."

Sherry was silent for a long minute, then "John ... I've spent a lot of time thinking about the same thing. I know that things will come out eventually, but I have to say that I'll take the risk. John- after spending just a couple of hours with you, I've realized what was missing in my life all this time. I don't know if I can stay with Jerry in the long run, anyhow. I don't think that I can just be a housewife any longer. I liked making a home, and I like my garden and working with the kids at church, but I need to have some of my life that's not built around my husband, and I don't know how!"